T.R. Reid, a journalist, and his family moved to Japan in the 1990’s. They experienced a peaceful and educational experience in Japan. Throughout the book, we are presented with the positive outcomes of a society that cares about the community just as they would care for their own family. Low crime rate, a sense of security, low divorce rates, low incidences of single parenthood. All of this happening while at the same time the country of Japan became a force to be reckoned with in from an economic and innovation standpoint. This, Reid calls it, the Social Miracle. From the way the community cme together to the way the whole society behave themselves. Japanese people take being part of the community very seriously. They seem to take pride in …show more content…
According to a 2011“Global Study on Homicide” by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC.ORG/GSH), page 11) Japan had half the amount of homicides compared to the United states. If children are taught at a very early age that they hold a certain responsibility to their community and then later on in life all around you from your family to the government tell you that to behave in any other way would bring shame to you and your family, a certain good behavior is to be expected. Reid’s book however did not touch on the possibilities of crimes that go unreported. Being that Japan is a male dominated society, and the belief that honor is the most important thing, one can speculate that crimes against women such as rape and family violence go wildly unreported. At the time Reid wrote CONFUCIUS NEXT DOOR, Japan had still not introduced a domestic violence law. But according to an article in 2003 in the Japan Times about violence against women, “When Japan improved its system for reporting and investigating domestic violence in 2011, the number of cases reported increased dramatically. An additional 46.3 percent surge in cases were reported after the National Police Agency changed its policies that year on domestic violence.” (http://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2013/07/06/editorials/violence-against-women/#.Vft78410yiw) This makes the peaceful and almost idealic picture that Reid paints, of …show more content…
Many of these philosophies have been repeated through the ages, such as Jesus teachings of the golden rule “do unto others as you would like them to do unto you” (bible Luke 6:31). Confucius was a man who strived to be a public servant, but other than a few opportunties he was mostly unsuccessful, although still respected. He became a tutor and like many great men, the height of his recognition was not during his lifetime. Even though Confucianism is not a religion, on the basis that it lacks a higher being or God, it is more than just a moral compass to follow. Confucius philosophies have proven to be a set of values that have served East Asia invaluably We can all learn from the concept of Jen, or human goodness, that tells us that there is a basic good in everyone. From the concept of Chun tzu, or the Mature Person, Confucius shows us how a person should behave, respectful, relaxed and someone that others look up to. “Only as those who make up society are transformed into chun tzus can the world move toward peace” (Reid
Confucianism has been a part of Chinese culture for over a thousand years. Many who have studied Confucianism would say that it is not a religion. It is better described as a philosophy or moral code. The philosophy of Confucianism comes mainly from the speeches and writings of Confucius, a great Chinese thinker and educator. He believed that Humanity, Rite, Neutrality, Virtue, Education, and Cultivation were the basis of human behavior. In addition, Confucius felt that this philosophy was the best way for people to behave and interact with others in society.
Confucius was China’s first moral philosopher, and his ideas influence people all over the world even in the present day. Confucianism is a philosophy, a political ideology, and a way of life. Confucius had many followers, two of which are especially significant and would continue his teachings long after his death. These two were called Mencius and Xunzi(Xun Kuang). However, even though they would continue to spread his ideas throughout the realm, they also developed nuanced and differing viewpoints from each other and that also differed from the teachings of Confucius himself. Their individual perspectives are each outlined in their own writings.
Confucianism is by far one of the best beliefs and shows many important aspects of life. A Philosopher named Kong Qiu first started Confucianism. Kong Qiu is better known by the name, Confucius. Confucius was born in 551 B.C and he saw that the world was filled with too much sorrow; therefore he came up with the philosophy of Confucianism. Confucius believed that his philosophy would impact all of China and would restore humanity, and it did. Later on Confucius’s teachings had become a government
Confucianism is a belief system of thoughts taught by Confucius in China during the 5th and 6th century BCE during the Zhou dynasty. During this time, China was dealing with serious political conflicts, moral chaos, and intellectual conflict and order were almost non-existent. During this political struggle, Confucius believed that going back to the “traditional ways” was the only path for society to get back on track and developed his thought into what is known as Confucianism. It has existed for over two millennia and has changed over time. Some people refer to Confucianism as philosophy while others view it as a religion. Confucianism is a belief system which can be incorporated into other religious beliefs and forms of religion. This belief system has heavily influenced politics and life in China and neighboring places.
This philosophy became the basis for Chinese government, education, and most other aspects of the culture. Confucius lived from 551 BCE until 479 BCE. In his time he was known for his teachings, which are conserved in the Analects. (Confucian teachings) His teachings are vast; being the foundation for many of the dynasties we know of today, such as: Han, Tang, and Song. These teachings include ethics, humanism, altruism, the disposition to do well, and more. (Confucian teachings) There are three major principles of Confucianism; these three include Ren, Yi, and Li. (Confucius, Analects) All three relate to each other but they also have their own individual concepts. Ren is the commitment to altruism. Altruism is the belief of selflessness; in which doing something that might benefit another at the expense of himself is a strong conviction. The responsibility to have a moral character to do well unto others is the concept of Yi. (Confucius, Analects) Now Li is the expression of these Confucian ideologies, the outward practice of it towards others in your community. Relationships are a pivotal part of Confucius philosophy, especially the relationship between a father and his son. In this philosophy, this relationship is known as filial piety; which is the virtue of respect between father and son along with other
Confucius created a theory to develop a peaceful society. This theory’s major belief was to put the needs of family and society first. For example parents owed children love and children owed their parents honor. Husband's owed their wives
The religion of Confucianism begins, of course, with Confucius whose Chinese name was Kong Qui and who lived from 551 B.C. to 479 B.C. Surprisingly Confucius was merely a low level government worker. He did not exactly view himself as the founder of a school of thought. Regardless, Confucianism is the most influential belief system in Chinese culture. It provides the rules which govern the social behavior of the individual. The basic teachings of Confucius are grounded in the Five Constant Virtues: humanity, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faithfulness. Confucius went on to define five basic human relations and
Confucianism is a social and ethical philosophy that focuses on family kindness and values reformist, idealistic and spiritual ideas. It stated that everyone had a place in society and should behave according to that role. Confucianism impacted Ancient China both positively and negatively. The positive impacts were that Confucianism brought stability to Ancient China and used it as a perfect example for society, but the negative impacts were it stated that women were subordinate to men and that the hierarchy system was unfair. Confucianism has affected modern Asian countries as well, countries in east Asia have bureaucratic cultures that trace back to Confucian teachings To summarise
Confucianism is one of the main influential ideologies on the Chinese culture. The founder of this religion is Confucius; he was a Chinese teacher. He taught traditional disciplines at that time, and believed that he could change the order of the Chinese society. He has different principals in life. First, Li: “It is the medium within which to talk about the entire body of the mores, or more precisely, have the authentic tradition and reasonable conversations of society” . In other words, li is the social rituals between people and they are divided into different categorized relationships like father and son, filial piety, between brothers, husband and wife; Ruler and subjects, and between friends. The Second principal was Jen, which is humaneness; it describes the inner personality of a person and that people should practice respect to one another. Li and Jen are values that complete each other to create the superior man, according to the Confucius. Also, Confucius believed in the spirits but keeping them at a distance. There are Five Classics and the Four Books are regarded as a reference for Confucianism.
Confucianism was founded by the first Chinese thinker to address both the political and social order of things straightforwardly and self- consciously. Kong Fuzi, or Confucius in English, lived from 551-479 B.C.E., but his teachings did not reach their full potential during the his life of an educator and political advisor born into an aristocratic family. Confucius gathered many disciples to spread his beliefs that were rooted in moral, ethical, and political character. He didn’t address questions about religion because he believed they were above the human moral intelligence capacity, nor those regarding obscure, complicated philosophical questions because they would not help solve the problems of China. Confucius did not really even care about the state, but he did believe
If one is to examine how Confucianism is still relevant to modern day society, it may be of some help to first understand this ethical system in its past context. Before the Zhou Dynasty (1100 – 221 BC), there is no written proof of any scholars providing personal philosophies with the intent of teaching others in an attempt to benefit society. The only types of philosophy present revolved around divine beings, divination, and magic. However, after the Zhou Dynasty ended, there was a period of time overran by philosophers who were all trying to educate the masses on ethical philosophies in order to make society a better place. If there was no attempt to teach philosophy in the past, what occurred during the Zhou reign that caused these scholars to all of a sudden have a desire to change society? This matter may
Confucianism is an East Asian philosophy built up by a Chinese philosopher, Confucius (K'ung Fu-tzu), in the 6th - 5th century BCE. It’s a philosophy based on human morals and relationships.
When looking at the ideas of Confucianism, one must look at the values that he expresses that are essential to human beings in order to become gentleman. Some of these values are present in every society and in every country. Ideas like jen and the Golden Rule are indispensable to life in almost every society on the globe.
Most ancient philosophical ideas developed in the ancient Chinese empires are believed to have their roots from Confucius. Confucianism was a simple way of life propagated by Confucius around the fifth and sixth century BC. Often perceived as a religion and other times as philosophy, it is conceivably best unspoken as a comprehensive humanism that neither slights nor denies heaven. The Chinese populaces have devotedly observed Confucianism for nearly two millennia. It has become an implicit part of their culture. However, there seem to be a cod division among its proponents holding contrasting perspectives and understanding with respect to it. The central focus of this presentation is to address the questions whether Confucianism is a religion or a philosophy or it encompasses both.
Confucius' philosophy was predominately a moral and political one. It was founded on the belief that heaven and earth coexist in harmony and balanced strength while maintaining a perpetual dynamism. Human beings, he taught, are sustained by these conditions and must strive to emulate the cosmic model.